Myne

twenty seven

“There is a girl,” Rain said slowly. “But, how are we to know if her fate is good?” 

She had the answer before she finished the question, but there was no stopping what she had begun. The question had to be voiced in its entirety. 

Sky saw that, and smiled. The girl was smart. She could be taught. She could learn, even by herself. But it would be faster with him lighting the path for her. 

“I can see that you realised it,” he said appreciatively. “I can read her fate for you. But, let’s do better. You will learn how. Might take time. But that’s okay. We are in no rush. We have already changed the trajectory of your fate. A little more won’t worsen anything. The question then is when would you start.” 

“Right away,” Ran answered. She didn’t even a moment to think. It wasn’t just that she worried about her fate. She was genuinely curious. She wanted to learn, everything her teacher had to teach. She wanted to be as good as him, as fast as possible. She couldn’t shake off the feeling that something good was waiting for her on the other side. “We can start right now. If that is possible.” 

“You’re teasing me, aren’t you?” Sky teased. “Are you trying to say we can start right now if I am able to? Are you trying to call me old?” 

“You are old.” 

He laughed heartily. “Yes. I am old. But that just makes me fine like wonderfully aged wine. Have you ever tasted wine?” 

“I’m not old enough.” 

“That’s right. You are still a kid. I think you forget that much too easily, much too often. Let me take it upon myself to remind you every time the need arises. You like that, don’t you? I can see it right there, on your face. No need to feel too thankful. As your teacher, it’s only right for me to do so.” 

He was laughing. She was frowning. She started it. But he had the last laugh. He was just so much better at it. What could she do? Only learn. 

Sky was a truly good teacher. After teasing enough, he began lessons immediately. 

“First, before the old runic alphabet, before anything, you must learn to concentrate. I know you can do it now, all by yourself. But let me ask you this. How long can this concentration last? How deep is it?” 

“I don’t know. A while, I think. Deep enough, I think.” 

“A while, isn’t nearly long enough. The last time was an accident. Beginner’s luck. Maybe even inspiration. These are like one time events. Even if they do happen again, they are not in your control. You need to concentrate a lot longer than a while. And so deep, you don’t even realise you are doing it. That is the first requirement of a good star reader. For you, a traveler, even more so. And that is exactly where we begin.” 

“Concentration.” 

“Yes. Concentration.” 

There were many methods. The eastern ways of discarding the senses and strengthening consciousness. The traditional way of practicing mental abilities. The methods of spiritual practice described in the texts from the old world. And the methods of the heavens, practiced by star readers, passed down from the ancestors. 

“It will be difficult at first. It will be deadeningly boring. You must persevere.” 

Thus began the lessons of understanding silence. She had to first see past the noise of the world, find the silence underneath. She had to embrace the silence. Be able to find it at a moment’s effort. She had to become one with the silence. Then, she would be able to hear the voices of the heavens and the stars. Only then, would she be truly able to step out of this world and into the high heavens. 

It was weeks before she was able to perfect it. She thought that was terrible. He told her she was wrong. That was actually very, very good. Most would need a lot longer than weeks. 

“Still far from the best.” 

He sighed. She was ambitious. He wasn’t sure that would be a good, or a bad, thing. 

Once she got to the stars, her progress noticeably sped up. She was able to see the old runes without any effort. 

Now, onto the next lessons. Another bore. Learning the old runic alphabet. The language of the old gods. Took her months to learn the alphabet. Fortunately, she only had to learn to recognise the characters. She didn’t have to learn to read. She didn’t need to perfect the vocabulary. She wasn’t going to read. 

She wasn’t sure it would benefit her in anyway. She could see the magic within the characters. Would recognising the characters help her see better? She couldn’t understand how that made sense. Then, she saw it. The magic. So much more brilliant. So much deeper. Vaster. She could see so much more detail. When she reached for it, she felt so much warmer. So much more comfortable. And so much more welcomed. 

She felt it was much easier to fall in, and through to the pictures underneath, to the dreams underneath. 

“And now what?” Sky asked. 

It had been a year since the lessons began. She was still far from perfect. She was nowhere near being a star reader of any kind, let alone good. But she had knocked on the door to becoming a traveler, pushed it open, walked in. She had taken the first steps. She was able to take care of herself, a little at least. 

“I still don’t know how to read anyone’s fate,” she answered. 

“And that is something you must remember. You are not a reader. You didn’t learn how. Why would you want to read anyone’s fate?” 

“What then must I do?” 

“What is it you have learned? Who have you learned to be?” 

“A traveler.” 

“What does it mean to be a traveler?” 

“To see.” 

That there was her answer. She was a traveler. She could see. All she needed was the few necessary details.